ISLAMABAD, July 9: For the last about two months, the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) has been running on an ad hoc basis as the government is yet to appoint its director general.

According to sources, the FDE is currently working under the Ministry of Capital Administration and Development and is responsible for the education in the capital. About 420 institutions are under the administrative control of the FDE.

However, after the removal of Atif Mehmood Kayai on the directive of the Supreme Court on May 18, the government has failed to appoint his successor.

The most important function of the FDE director general is to organise and manage the administration, support the system and activities that facilitate the effective running of educational institutions.

Spokesman for Federal Government College Teachers Association Professor Tahir Mehmood said the post of director general was very important.

“This is the reason that in the past senior-most professors of F.G. colleges having lots of experience in both academics as well as administration were appointed as the director general of the FDE,” he added.

An official of CAD requesting not to be quoted said after implementing the orders of the apex court, the acting charge of the FDE was given to its director administration Tajamul Hussain Shah while Shahnaz A. Riaz, a candidate for the post of DG, was appointed as the director monitoring and evaluation.

He said: “In past, a considerable number of people from outside were inducted as the DG. In the year 2000, even a retired brigadier was hired as the FDE chief, the first critical turning point in the history of the institution.”

He said it was the need of the hour that ad hocism, time-gap arrangements and experiments with the post be stopped.

“The officials, especially the teaching staff members, find it hard to get their grievances resolved in the absence of the director general,” he said.

When contacted, Joint Secretary CAD Rafique Tahir said a summery for the appointment of the director general FDE had been sent to the prime minister secretariat. He said it was expected that the new prime minister would appoint the FDE head soon.